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Investment Process
The financial industry looks at risk management as an academic study looking out results over the long term, 30 - 40 years. Unfortunately, our clients don’t necessarily have that kind of time, especially if relying on their portfolios for retirement income. Our portfolios are individually tailored. Through our macro risk managed approach our portfolios are geared towards conservatism and predictable growth. The level of risk we take in our portfolios is predicated by the economic environment. To understand risk, we help clients understand that the risk we build into the portfolio or don’t take is predicated on understanding the economic environment based on Growth, Inflation and Government Policy. The back bone of our process, to achieving investment performance is predicated on allocating funds to the right asset classes (Cash, Currency, Bonds, Global Stocks, Commodities). Every decision examines both reward and risk of each asset class within the portfolio structure based on the economic environment to help control risk. We use a global approach, investing in a diversified portfolio of fixed income, global equities, commodities, currency, real estate with tactical adjustments. We take a disciplined approach to investing, asset class, regional, sector and security specific exposure are all monitored closely. We take pride in understanding our client’s investment needs and individual circumstances. The sole purpose of our investment process is to provide our clients with peace of mind. It is our commitment to transparency, clarity and communication that makes us a success with clients.
View published source ↗Investment Process
Our investment process is built upon transparency and understanding. It is vital that our clients understand what it is they are invested in and why. Clients make better decisions when they have access to better information. With better decisions clients have confidence in their ability to stay on track in achieving their family’s financial goals. The key to our client’s success over the long term will be measured by our ability to immunize the portfolio from the massive ups and downs, ensuring that our clients are getting paid to take on risk as opposed to paying for taking risk, with a pervasive focus on capital preservation. As Portfolio Managers our investment process is centered around the investor. The most important thing we do for our clients and their families is to protect their wealth. The financial industry refers to risk management in terms of volatility. What clients are truly concerned about is loss of wealth. All too often investors are presented with a plan showing a nice clean linear projection of investment performance (blue line in chart below), unfortunately what they get is much more fractal in nature. Resulting in a significant shortfall (red line, difference between what was promised and received). Knowing that the market does not always go up (non-linear), we look to our data driven investment process to manage risk, to protect our client’s wealth. The reason for this is most firms still look at risk management as rebalancing a 60/40 portfolio of stocks to bonds, looking to the bonds to offset the losses when equities go down.
View published source ↗Why Choose Clearly Defined Strategies Group at Assante Capital Markets Ltd?
Our clients are families, who are going through the same challenges and opportunities we have with our own families. Whether it be retirement income planning, navigating the markets, cottage succession planning, business exit strategies or even putting our kids through school. The advice we give reflects the understanding that families work hard to provide for today, to save for the future, and most importantly protect what they have worked so hard to build. Ensuring that this generation and the next will be better off due to the decisions and choices they have made. We navigate our families through all the noise (narratives and misinformation), focusing on the information that allows them to make better more financially sound decisions. We point out the information that is of value to their situation, ultimately keying in on the areas they can control. When interacting with our families we don’t deal in story telling or narratives, we focus on data. We don’t put blind faith in the markets always going up. Understanding that the markets like life are not linear, they are dynamic and ever-changing. As a result of this, our investment process, and wealth strategies are actively managed under the lens of managing risk.
View published source ↗Why Choose Clearly Defined Strategies Group at Assante Capital Markets Ltd?
While the investment industry refers to risk in terms of volatility, the risk of permanent loss is what matters most to investors. We believe that risk management should be embedded in all parts of the investment process. The goal of risk management is to grow your capital while protecting it from major market draw downs. Our client’s investment plans have a finite time span for both accumulation and distribution of assets, the time lost in “getting back to even” following a major market correction is our primary concern. Our entire investing process is designed to mitigate those losses during periods of significant market declines. And right now, there's a compelling case that investors need a rigorous risk management process more than ever before. As parents, husbands, sons, and business owners ourselves, we know the key to financial freedom is a comprehensive plan, examining multiple scenarios and strategies. We all want the best for our family’s future. At Clearly Defined Strategies Group we provide the guidance to avoid the big mistakes, mistakes that cost real wealth, ensuring the ability to protect and provide for the family well into the future.
View published source ↗Client Process Tracker
So much of what we do for our clients and their families goes beyond investment planning. It is vital to the success of our clients that we focus on what we can control. Our process is comprised of four modules, Financial Planning, Wealth Management, Estate and Risk Planning, and Holistic Topics. Not every box will apply to every client in the beginning of our relationship but over time more and more areas of our process will come into play. Once they do become an issue that needs to be addressed it is important to note that each area is addressed on an regular basis either by us or us in conjunction with one of our partners.
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